25+ Exciting Summer Activities for Preschoolers to Keep Them Busy

From splashing in water play to embarking on nature scavenger hunts and creating some cool sensory bins, these ideas are perfect for keeping little ones entertained and engaged all summer!

We’ve curated 50 simple yet exhilarating Summer Activities for Preschoolers and toddlers guaranteed to make this season unforgettable. 

But here is a secret: I have done these activities with kids of all ages. Because these activities are open-ended, the kid is in charge of how the game is played, so they are great for kids younger or older. They all will find their own learning and explore through play.

 Let’s dive into 50 amazing Summer Activities for Preschoolers to make this summer unforgettable for your preschoolers!

To reduce the feeling of being overwhelmed and then end up not doing anything, I’ve divided the activities into categories so they’re easier to find and do!  

You will find activities for water play, nature play, movement, art, and science.

Water Activities Ideas FOR SUMMER

Water is a great fine motor activity that is familiar to them from the womb, so they have a special connection to water play.

We all have a water table or a big container like Tupperware to create water play stations.

I always have a water station in my sensory classes because I know that even if the kids don’t like the sensory activity I bring, they will always like water play.

let’s start with easy setups with water and work our way to nature, art, and science ideas!

Backyard Water Play

Set up sprinklers, kiddie pools, and water slides in the backyard to create a mini water park for preschoolers to splash and play in. Or if you want something simple, just let the kids play with the hose. They LOVE IT

Water fountain and splash pad play

Nothing is better on a hot summer day than heading to a local park, splash pad, or fountain to play with some water and cool down. This water fountain had a water maze, so I took some toy boats to let the kids explore how the water moved them around.

Spray Bottle Water Play

Get a small water spray bottle, usually found in the hair cleaning or gardening area. This fun tool strengthens little fingers to prepare for good handwriting and is also a favorite to use!
Take it to the beach, use it in your backyard, and allow your child to spray the water onto plants, sidewalks, and even fences. 

Rainbow Pom Pom Fun

Fill your water table with water and add some pom-poms, cups, and bowls to allow your preschoolers to work on eye-hand coordination as they transfer the pom-poms to different containers. This game is simple enough to allow your child to work on their creative and problem-solving skills during play.

Color Water in a simple water bin

Pinterest has made popular overcomplicated sensory bins, but a simple water bin game is to color the water and add some pool toys, making the perfect summer activities for preschoolers and toddlers.

I chose bathtub boats, some giant seashells I had around from an old decoration, and a little bit of blue food coloring to color the water and create this easy water table game.

Glow in the dark bath time.

Summer days are long, and sometimes, you need a break from the heat, so water play can also be indoors; I love a good bathtub activity!

Get some glow-in-the-dark sticks (usually popular in July for 4th of July celebrations or easily found at your local party supply store.

Turn off the lights, add some glow sticks, and let the music go! It’s a glow-in-the-dark party!

Bonus: This is also a super cool idea, even without the water—a nice glow stick summer party in the dark!

Pouring Water Sensory Bin

Water bins can be created using a small Tupperware or your water table, or you can even do this activity at the pool. You only need lots of spoons, cups, and bottles to create a station that encourages lots of pouring from one container to the other.

Make it fancy and add funnels and other fancy setups!

Create a Small World: Pond

Sensory bins allow kids to role-play. You can create all types of scenarios, from ponds to the ocean to even the zoo! Get creative and add some water.

Giant Bubble Fun

Create a bubble solution and use large bubble wands or homemade bubble makers to create gigantic bubbles for preschoolers to chase and pop.

NATURE-BASED SUMMER ACTIVITIES  

Summer Nature Scavenger Hunt

Embracing nature’s wonders with an exciting scavenger hunt. Make a list of things that are around your neighborhood or things you can see on the way to the beach.

This free summer scavenger hunt printable from the printables fairy is a fun one to keep handy!

Want a no-print option? Choose the letter of the alphabet in order and start finding things that start with each letter.

Summer Bucket List Ideas

Don’t forget to download our easy summer bucket list of ideas

Collect Nature’s Treasures:

List items to hunt for, encouraging preschoolers to engage with the environment.

Here are some ideas for collecting seashells, large palm tree seeds, sticks, rocks, and pebbles from a local water stream.

  DIY Nature Journals

Crafty ideas to document and cherish the outdoor adventures or make a funny bug using leaves found around your backyard.

Nature Art Adventures

Inspiring creative outdoors using art materials is a favorite activity I love to do all year round. Hang a large sheet of paper and let the kids get inspired by the colors of nature to paint!

Mini-Gardening

Cultivating green thumbs with simple gardening activities tailored for preschoolers. I have done an herb garden, a flower garden, and a butterfly garden.

And if you don’t have a green thumb, you can just buy a few plants and let the kids water them throughout the summer.

MOVEMENT GAMES FOR Preschool Summer Camp Activities

   Campfire Stories & Songs

Fostering imagination and camaraderie with storytelling and sing-alongs. We love to make smores, but you can also learn a few campfire songs to make the best of your time.

40 Top Campfire Songs to Sing During Your Next Camping Trip

ART PRESCHOOL ACTIVITIES FOR SUMMER

Painting Rocks

You can set up the quickest painting activity using watercolor paint and some rocks from your backyard (or seashells from your trip to the beach).

Painting Activity at the park

Playgrounds are fun; painting at the playground is even better! Set up a painting station slide by covering it with craft paper. Sprinkle some paint on it and give your child a ball to roll around the slide. As the ball rolls around, the ball will love the ball around, creating amazing swirls and designs.

 Summer-themed Crafts

Summer is a great time to do art outside. How about a giant popsicle? You can make this by cutting cardboard, posterboard, or cardstock the size of a rounded corner rectangle and taping or gluing jumbo popsicle sticks to the back.

Chalk activities

Chalk is a must-have for summer. You can go simple and just let the kids draw on the sidewalk, or you can get super creative by creating a city, adding some cars, and even water with paintbrushes to erase it!

For those wanting to do something extra, you can make DIY chalk paint using food coloring and cornstarch!

Water Balloon Bonanza

  Splash-tactic Fun mini-water balloons are a must for this summer. You can get these mini balloons that fill up all at once by just connecting them to the hose!

 Reusable water balloon toss

  If you want a more eco-friendly water balloon solution, these reusable balloons were trending last year, and for good reason! We love taking them to the pool because they are small and provide hours of fun.

You open them up, place them underwater, and they fill up and close automatically. Then, just through them, the magnets that hold them together open up. And you can reuse them again and again.

SCIENCE ACTIVITIES FOR PRESCHOOL SUMMER FUN

7. Sink or Float

A science experiment and a water play activity using what you have around the house or the backyard can make for a fun sink or float guessing game.

Colored Mixing Station

For this activity, you need two or more containers. Choose white or clear containers so the colors can be seen. Color the water using food coloring or washable paint. Choose primary colors (red, yellow, or blue). Provide your child with cups to mix and pour the water into each other and create new colors. This is a great science activity and a color-learning game as well.

    

Animal Encounters

Exploring the fascinating world of backyard critters through observation and discovery. You can take a field trip to a local pet farm, aquarium, or even a nursery! Our latest obsession is butterflies, their caterpillars, and chrysalists.

Final thoughts on Summer ACtivities For Preschoolers

Summer offers a ton of opportunities to play outdoors, explore water play, and take those indoor activities outside. Make a picnic, do some art, play with the water hose, and let loose! Make memories that will last forever!

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